PRO FOOTBALL

PRO FOOTBALL; Browns Hire Miami's Davis To Be Coach

By CHARLIE NOBLES

Published: January 30, 2001

CORAL GABLES, Fla., Jan. 29—
Butch Davis, who in six seasons as head coach helped the University of Miami return to football prominence, resigned today to become the head coach of the Cleveland Browns. Among those surprised by the decision was Marvin Lewis, the celebrated Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator who had planned to interview for the Browns job this week.

Since firing Chris Palmer on Jan. 11, the Browns have been studying a dwindling list of candidates. A five-year contract worth upward of $15 million prompted Davis, a former Dallas Cowboys assistant, to suddenly change his mind about making a jump to the National Football League. For weeks he had been saying he would stay at Miami. In November, he was on the verge of signing a contract extension before hiring the agent Marvin Demoff to represent him.

Browns President Carmen Policy made it official today when he said that Davis would be introduced Tuesday morning. ''The Browns organization is extremely pleased to have Butch Davis as our next coach,'' Policy said in a statement.

Lewis, whose defense in Baltimore set several league records this season and topped it off by squashing the Giants in Super Bowl XXXV, had been considered by some as the Browns' probable choice. So now Lewis finds himself competing against the Giants' defensive coordinator, John Fox, for the head coaching job in Buffalo, the last opening in the N.F.L.

If Lewis is bypassed again, it could be seen as an awkward development for a league that has been fervently encouraging more head coaching opportunities for blacks than the current three among 31 teams.

The Browns' selection of Davis caught many by surprise, and left the Hurricanes with a potentially troubling recruiting quandary. The national signing day is a week from Wednesday.

Asked about the Browns job after the Hurricanes completed the season with an 11-1 record, the No. 2 ranking and a victory over Florida in the Sugar Bowl, Davis said, ''I have no desire whatsoever for the Browns to contact me.''

Just last Saturday, he described the final haggling over a buyback clause in his Miami contract extension as a formality.

Still, Miami Athletic Director Paul Dee took the high road today. He said he was disappointed and surprised by Davis's announcement, but he declined to criticize him, saying the Browns contract offered Davis distinguished financial security. Davis would have earned about $1.3 million annually had he stayed at Miami.

''Betrayed?'' Dee said, repeating a question. ''Naw, I think Butch and I have a real good understanding. He served the university exceedingly well. We worked very hard to come to terms, and I thought we were very close to resolving everything. It's just that this other offer came up.''

Under Davis, the four-time national champion Miami weathered National Collegiate Athletic Association probation for recruiting violations before reasserting itself as a power. He had a 55-20 record there, including four straight bowl victories. Dee quickly named the offensive coordinator Larry Coker as the Hurricanes' interim head coach. Dee said Coker would receive consideration as Davis's replacement. Others who figure to be candidates: Pittsburgh's Walt Harris; East Carolina's Steve Logan; Colorado State's Sonny Lubick; the Miami Dolphins' offensive coordinator, Chan Gailey; and possibly Wisconsin's Barry Alvarez.

Davis asked for a meeting with Dee this morning. By 11:30 a.m., Davis had assembled his players, the same ones he told that he wasn't leaving.

''He said, 'I love you guys and I wish you well, but I've got to move on,' '' offensive lineman Brett Romberg said. ''It was pretty intense in there, because it caught us all by surprise.''

Quarterback Ken Dorsey, who blossomed this season, said Davis recruited and believed in him when few others would. ''I got my chance because of him, so I will always be appreciative of that,'' he said. ''He is an outstanding coach and he will be missed.''

After Davis gave his speech, Miami's players asked the coaches to leave the room. ''We talked about how this doesn't change anything we're trying to do,'' Romberg said. ''This is not going to hinder us from winning another national title.''

Next, a group of seven players, including Romberg and Dorsey, went to Dee to convince him that Coker should be named the head coach, in the interest of continuity.

Davis's departure leaves the Hurricanes vulnerable in recruiting. They were expecting a class that was projected among the nation's best. Now all they know is that those who have given an oral commitment to Miami will be subjected to pitches by other universities.

''You can't get away from the fact that a lot of recruiting is personal,'' Dee said. ''We hope it will have a minimal effect.''

Buck Ortega, a 6-foot-5, 225-pound quarterback/linebacker from Miami Gulliver Academy, a small-school Florida state champion, is among the recruits. Ortega's father, Ralph Ortega, a former Falcons and Dolphins linebacker, said today that the identity of the head coach wasn't crucial in his son's decision to attend Miami.

''Unless they choose a Martian,'' Ortega said with a smile.

Photo: Butch Davis led Miami to an 11-1 mark last season. He inherits a Browns team that is 5-27 since returning to the N.F.L. (Associated Press)(pg. D4)